Make plans to attend ASIPP's newest course - a comprehensive review course and hands-on cadaver workshop dedicated solely to vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty on February 16-18, 2007 in Memphis TN. This CME educational program will consist of didactics covering various aspects of vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty, followed by a comprehensive hands- on cadaver workshop.

The course is designed to prepare physicians seeking credentialing or as an in-depth review of vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty. Participants will experience a comprehensive learning opportunity focused on all aspects of vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty.

Course size is limited so Register today to insure your spot in this exciting new course. Visit the ASIPP Web site for the brochure and more information.

Online registration is now open for the 2007 Competency Review Courses and Examinations in Coding, Compliance, and Practice Management & Controlled Substance Management.

The course will be held at the Caribe Royale Resort in beautiful Orlando, FL. The five-day intensive review course (April 12-16) is planned as a CME activity to prepare physicians seeking competency certification and to provide Interventional Pain Management Specialists and other healthcare providers an in-depth review of multiple areas of interventional pain management.

The Competency Certification Exams will be held on April 17. Register today for the review courses and exams!

Physician Registration

Non-physician Registration

The ink was barely dry on the law that prevented a 2007 Medicare physician fee reduction when the office that makes official cost predictions for Congress projected a 2008 cut that will be even more difficult to reverse.

Medicare pay to physicians will be reduced about 10% next year if current law remains unchanged, the Congressional Budget Office said Dec. 28, 2006, in its final cost assessment of the legislation that averted a 5% cut this year. So unless Congress overhauls the system that determines reimbursements or approves another short-term adjustment, next year's cut is expected to be roughly twice what doctors faced before lawmakers intervened in December.

CMS released the quarterly update to the Correct Coding Initiative (CCI) edits, version 13.0, effective January 1, 2007.

Sen. John Ensign (R-Nev.) has reintroduced legislation (S 243) he sponsored in the 109th Congress that would limit noneconomic damages in medical malpractice lawsuits to $750,000, CQ HealthBeat reports. Ensign said that the bill would cap noneconomic damages for a single health care provider at $250,000 with a total limit of $750,000. The legislation would not limit economic damages, but it would limit attorneys' fees.

The bill is modeled after a Texas law that has helped reduce medical malpractice insurance premiums in that state. The American Medical Association in a statement said the Texas law has kept physicians' malpractice premiums down and improved patients' access to care.

Ensign in a news release said, "Medical liability reform works, and it's turning the tide against frivolous lawsuits and outrageous jury awards." Democrats and trial lawyers opposed the measure last session and "will likely oppose it again" this session, according to CQ HealthBeat (CQ HealthBeat, 1/12).

There's no shortage of medical information on the Internet - type "pain relief" into Google's search engine, for example, and in a fraction of a second, you'll come up with links to more than 1.6 million sites ranging from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Web page to promotions for magnet therapy and self- hypnotherapy CDs.

"Figuring out what is trustworthy information is difficult," said Ted Smith of Louisville, who became frustrated in 2004 when he tried to learn more about the medicines that were being given to his terminally ill mother.

Smith came away from the experience with an idea for a Web service he thought could help others with similar needs. The result is a Louisville startup, MedTrackAlert, that scours the online press for news of medicinal developments and then delivers the information to half a million newsletter subscribers. The service covers all of the major medications for chronic conditions and continues adding more drug coverage, he said.

A new coalition of technology companies and healthcare payers has initiated a project to provide free electronic prescribing to every physician in the U.S. The $100 million venture relies on contributions from major IT firms such as Microsoft, Cisco Systems Corp., and Dell, among others.

Termed the National E-Prescribing Patient Safety Initiative (NEPSI), the project will be led by clinical information technology provider Allscripts. The NEPSI program intends to provide physicians free access to a web-based e-prescribing software program called eRx NOW.

The US House of Representatives on Friday passed a bill requiring the government to negotiate drug prices with pharmaceutical companies. But President Bush said he would veto the measure if it passes the Senate, and the 255-to-170 vote in the House could not override a veto.

Currently, Medicare cannot negotiate drug prices. Individual insurance companies contract with Medicare to provide prescription drug coverage, and only they are allowed to negotiate with manufacturers and wholesalers.

Supporters of the House measure, called the Medicare Prescription Drug Price Negotiation Act, said it would save $96 billion over 10 years.

Rea d more...

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt's statement

Applications are now being accepted for the FIPP (ABIPP Part II) examination to be held on March 11, 2007 in Memphis, TN. Successful completion of FIPP is a required component for the American Board of Interventional Pain Physicians (ABIPP) certification.

The deadline for applications is Feb. 1. Space is limited so early registration is encouraged. Upon acceptance of your application, you will be sent review material for examination preparation. For more details on the FIPP exam or to access the application click on the following link FIPP or contact Paula Brashear at (806) 743-3112 or paula.brashear@ttuhsc.edu

Along with the FIPP examination, ASIPP is offering the Interventional Techniques Review Course (March 9) and a Comprehensive Cadaver Workshop (March 10). ASIPP has secured a group rate of $154 per night with host hotel Doubletree Downtown if booked by Feb 20th, 2007. Inform the agent you are booking for ASIPP. Online registration is now available. For information on the review course, cadaver workshop and exam, visit our Web site. Register Online today!

The two U.S. metropolitan areas with the highest rates of past month illicit drug use are San Francisco (12.7 percent) and Detroit (9.5 percent) while the national average was 8.1 percent, says a new report by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Chicago (25.7 percent) and Houston (25.6 percent) had higher rates of binge drinking than the national average (22.7 percent), and Detroit was the only metropolitan statistical area with a past month cigarette use rate that was higher than the national average (25.3 percent).

The NSDUH Report: Substance Use in the 15 Largest Metropolitan Statistical Areas: 2002-2005 compares estimates for illicit drug use, binge alcohol use, and cigarette use for the nation as a whole with the same behaviors in the 15 largest metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs).